Teardrop
by Prentissrose
Summary: Emily and JJ have been friends for a long time, but how do their views shift when they see the most vulnerable sides of each other?When Emily is abducted by her sick ex-boyfriend and JJ is the only one there for her after her terrible ordeal, they become closer than ever, becoming more than friends and falling more in love than they ever thought possible.
1. Home

**A/N: Hey guys! I'm back from the dead! Justtt kidding I wasn't dead, but school is close to death. So, I'm thinking of making this a longer one of my stories and surprise! it's not actually an SVU fic. Some of my followers might be surprised, but as an overall statement, this story will have some harsh material such as kidnapping, rape, and overall violence. If any of ya'll are particularly sensitive to that kinda stuff you may now click the back arrow. There won't be any of that stuff in this particular chapter, and I will certainly put a note on my chapters that do! But there will also be love, romance, and ****_consensual_****, hot sex. This is also slightly A/U as Emily never left and JJ hasn't married Will. So my sweet readers if you would like to, read on! Also please drop me a review if you liked, disliked, hate, or adored this chapter! I would also like some suggestions if ya'll are willing! Thank you lovelies and enjoy!**

* * *

Emily Prentiss stared out at the setting sun on the sea, snuggled in her plush seat on the BAU's private jet as the team flew away from Florida and back to Washington D.C. In the next fifteen minutes Emily could see almost everyone drift off into an exhausted sleep. She couldn't blame them. It had been a particularly rough case. The team had been called to Miami to investigate a series of murders involving young women that had been sexually assaulted, stabbed, and dumped in the woods. The unsub was a real creep too. He told Morgan that he had been acting out the fantasies he'd wanted to perform on his own daughter. It had taken a great toll on all of them.

Emily glanced out the window after 15 minutes and saw that the sun had completely set and now it was just complete blackness spanning out for miles and miles across the ocean. It was eerie, unknown, but something Emily was used to.

She heard a quiet sniffle to her right. JJ sat with her eyes squeezed shut and her head down. Emily knew well enough by now that when a member of team was in distress, she should leave them alone and let them ask for help. But there was something about JJ to Emily. Emily had an overwhelming urge to protect her from any danger whether it be a bad guy or sadness. She wanted to comfort the blonde haired agent whenever she was upset, but she had to bite her tongue every time. It wasn't her place after all. Ah, but the demon on Emily's shoulder told her otherwise. They were friends after all -_work_ friends! Maybe this would bring your relationship closer- or she would think I was pushy. Why don't you simply ask her what's wrong -and put her on the spot? Alas, the devil won.

"JJ?" Emily asked quietly. JJ's head shot up. Her blue eyes snapped open at once. _Shit,_ Emily thought, _I scared her._ "Sorry," Emily muttered. "I didn't mean to startle you."

JJ smiled weakly in reply. "It's ok. I just thought everyone was asleep, that's all."

"At least I'm not the unsub," Emily joked, trying to lighten the mood, though secretly she didn't think her humor was very clever. It didn't matter though because it made JJ smile.

"That's true," JJ said with a chuckle. Her smile faded quickly though. "Em, can I talk to you about something?" There it was. JJ had asked Emily for help without Emily pushing her. Take that angel. Devil 1 angel 0.

"Sure. I'm all ears," Emily smiled sympathetically and in an attempt to make JJ more comfortable she ushered to the seat across from her. A relieved expression appeared on JJ's face and she fluidly sunk into the comfy chair.

"It's about Will," JJ sighed, keeping her eyes lowered, "and Henry." Oh. _Oh_. Now Emily was good at giving advice, but not family kind of advice. Every family relationship she'd ever had had been fucked up royally, but now was not the time to think about herself. This was JJ and Emily vowed she would help her however she could.

"Will and I, we," she paused taking a deep breath, "we've been having some problems. We talked about getting married only a few months ago, but now we're just like...two different people I guess. He's not the man I fell in love with. He's not patient or understanding anymore. We end up in screaming fights over the most dumb things and I can see the toll it's taking on Henry. I don't want him to think Will and I hate each other because we don't, we're just not meant to be together anymore I guess." All of this came out in a rush from JJ as though she'd been holding it in for a while.

"Oh, J," Emily breathed sadly, not sure what to say.

"That's not even the worst part," JJ muttered her blue eyes making full on contact with Emily's brown ones. "He suing for full custody of Henry." Emily felt as if a brink had been dropped on her stomach. Full custody? Oh my God, Will couldn't do that to JJ. She loved little Henry more than anything in the entire world. Emily knew JJ would rather die than give up custody of her son.

"JJ, he can't do that to you," Emily thought out loud, her brows wrinkling in concern. "You're his mother. The judge won't let that happen."

"No, he can," JJ said, her voice a faint squeak, "I'm gone for weeks at a time and when I am home Will and I just fight. Will has a good case and I know it. I wouldn't mind joint custody because Henry loves Will and he's a great father, but if Will takes him away from me, I don't know what I'll do."

"JJ, you're forgetting something. _You_ are also a great parent, not just Will. The way you look when you are around that child..." Emily trailed off, "nobody will take him away from you. I won't let them. _We_ won't let them." Emily ushered to the rest of the sleeping team. "We got your back JJ. Garcia can probably hack in a schedule you for a judge that's a mother. Reid will bore him to death while trying to explain how the universe formed." JJ chuckled, crinkles appearing around the corner of her eyes. "See?" Emily asked, chuckling herself. "It's all gonna be okay." JJ's smile wobbled and Emily saw her eyes cloud with tears.

"Thank you, Emily," JJ nearly whispered. Emily had a suspicion that if she tried to talk any louder her voice would crack. Emily felt JJ's warm palm slip into her hand. She squeezed the younger agent's pale hand lightly to let her know that she wasn't going anywhere. Emily leaned her head back onto the plush seat as did JJ and they both drifted off to sleep, still holding each other's hands.

* * *

"Wake up ladies," Morgan's deep voice rumbled Emily awake. Her sleepy eyes looked around and saw the rest of the team filing off of the plane. JJ was stretching and yawning.

"Thank God we're home," Emily muttered, excited to collapse into bed already.

"You can say that again," JJ said, slinging her black duffle onto her shoulder.

Emily felt her phone vibrating in the pocket of her sweater and she held back a groan. Right when she got home and already someone was calling to bother her. Even when she saw that it was Garcia, she contemplated ignoring it, but she loved her friend.

"Hey Garcia," Emily said.

"Hello my lovely," Garcia singsonged back. "Whose up for drinks tonight?"

"I'm gonna have to pass on this one," Emily mumbled, not sure she could walk another step without passing out.

"Not happening," Garcia snapped playfully. "Ask the rest of the dream team and I'll pick a place."

"Garcia," Emily whined.

"Did I stutter, Prentiss?" Emily knew she wasn't getting out of this one. When Garcia wanted something, she got it.

"Whose up for drinks with Garcia?" Emily called up to the rest of the team as they walked towards the BAU. Rossi waved her off. Hotch gave his usual stern glare and shook his head. Morgan and Reid however shrugged and nonchalantly agreed to go, despite their exhaustion. JJ hesitated however.

"I need to see Henry," JJ finally muttered. Emily nodded in understanding, slightly disappointed that she wouldn't be coming with them.

"Alright, you got Morgan and Reid in," Emily turned her voice back to Garcia, not taking her eyes off of JJ's.

"Fantastic!" Garcia exclaimed. "and you, of course." It wasn't a question. "Meet you in ten in the bullpen?"

"Sure thing," Emily replied, less enthusiastic than she should have been. The two friends hung up and Emily shook her head in disbelief. She couldn't believe that Garcia had some how managed to rope her into a night out after the kind of week they had been through. Emily JJ dropped back to talk to her.

"Please kill me," Emily murmured jokingly to her. "After this case, I don't know if I can handle Garcia _and_ Reid at the same time." JJ stopped walking, her eyes swinging around to look at Emily.

"I could never, ever do anything to hurt you," She breathed, a sincerity pulsing in her voice. Emily bit her lip. Something about the way JJ looked with her big, blue eyes looking right into her soul and her perfect pink lips. Emily realized she'd never thought of JJ this way before, at least not directly. It made her queazy, especially when she had the sudden urge to lean in an kiss those lips. It was unsettling to have these feelings.

Emily finally remember to respond. "I know." It seemed like minutes that the two kept eye contact, drinking in the sight of each other.

"Yo Prentiss!" Morgan called from the front entrance a long way ahead of them. "Hurry up!"

"Coming!" She called back, not yet ready to break eye contact. "I guess I should go." Not really wanting to.

"I guess you should," JJ responded.

"I'll see you soon," Emily said, more of a hopeful question than anything.

"You will." JJ half smiled, her eyes seeming seductive. Before Emily could ponder her body language anymore, JJ turned and walked off in the direction of the parking lot.

Emily let out a breath she felt that she had been holding in for minutes. Little did Emily know what was coming up ahead of her, or she would have begged JJ to take her home.


	2. A win and a loss

**A/N: Enjoy guys! Pretty please leave a review! Thanks to all who already did!**

* * *

Emily was thankful that Reid offered to drive her to the bar, while Morgan took his car and Garcia hers. Emily figured she would just take a cab to work in the morning and pick up her Prius then.

The ride was quiet, Reid asking very few questions and explaining very few scientific phenomena, and Emily was thankful for that as well. The bar was a short ten minutes away, the streets still bustling even at such a late hour. Reid swiftly pulled into a parking space and the pair stepped out of the car into the freezing, early December air.

The bar, however, was warm and slightly crowded, but Morgan easily pushed his way through the swarming crowd and got the four a booth nestled near the back.

"I'll get us a round," Garcia offered, disappearing towards the bar. Emily slid into the seat next to Reid and immediately felt her eyelids drop. Morgan snickered.

"Prentiss is tired, I see." She narrowed her eyes, mostly just to satisfy the stinging sensation.

"I'm surprised you're not," Emily snapped back. Morgan held up his hands to initiate surrender.

"I will admit, it was a pretty life-sucking case."

"Here we are friends!" Garcia arrived with a round of beers for them. Though Emily was exhausted she had to admit those golden brown beers looked especially delicious.

They each took a big sip out of their drinks and relaxed. It felt good to finally relax with a nice cool beer.

"Emily?" Her name rang out, and it wasn't from one of her friends. She looked up, looking for the source and there he was. Eric Stokins. _The_ Eric Stokins. The guy she'd lost her virginity to at Yale. The guy she'd gone out with for four, long years. The guy she'd fallen head over heels for.

"Eric," Emily stated, not sure she could say anything else. He looked even more handsome than she remembered. His dark brown hair still had that slightly-gelled style, his sculpted muscles still rippled beautifully, and his deep blue eyes still had that certain playfulness to them. God, though her time in college was nearly 20 years ago, she remembered it like it was yesterday. Those romantic nights with Eric flashed before her eyes and for a moment she questioned why the hell she broke up with him in the first place; he was practically perfect. _Oh right_, she thought glumly,_ I dumped him after my big break with the FBI. _And for a moment, Emily actually regretted taking that opportunity.

"How are you?" He asked with a gleaming smile, his blue eyes still locked on hers.

"I'm great!" Emily responded, suddenly feeling more energized than a few minutes ago. "I-I'm so surprised to see you," She stuttered, still shocked that _Eric Stokins_ turned up in the same bar as her. Emily heard a muffled cough across from her and saw Morgan holding back a smile while Garcia had a certain glint in her eye. Emily didn't even want to know what expression Reid was wearing.

"Oh-these are my friends slash coworkers, Derek, Penelope, and-" she turned around to take a glance at Reid who had a faint pink tint on his cheeks, "Spencer." Eric grinned and waved.

"Great to meet you guys."

"And this is my old boyfriend from Yale, Eric," Emily gave a faint giggle when she said boyfriend, but she didn't even care.

For a moment, a split second, JJ flashed into her mind. Emily had to admit that she enjoyed the way JJ looked at her more than Eric did, but she tried to squeeze the thought of the blonde beauty out of her mind. Whatever fantasy she had about her and JJ was never, _ever_ going to happen as much as she wished it. She advised herself to take advantage of this moment, to maybe find true love.

A large part of her wanted JJ, no matter what she told herself.

* * *

JJ sighed and unlocked the door to her home. Though at this point, it was mostly Will's home. She was antsy, more eager than she'd been in a while after a case. She just needed to see Henry and she'd be okay.

JJ tossed her keys on the kitchen counter and pulled off her jacket, placing it on the kitchen table along with her phone. Nothing could distract her from being with Henry, after all, it might be one of the last times she saw him. Jogging up the stairs, JJ couldn't help her wandering eyes as they strayed to the photos on the wall. JJ, Will, Henry, all...smiling. Was a job really worth this kind of misery? No, no, it wasn't just the job. Her problems with Will were so much more deep than just the job and she knew it, but maybe it would help...

But leaving the job would mean leaving Emily, and she just couldn't see herself doing that.

Her mind wandered away from Emily and back to Henry.

Carefully, she opened the door to Henry's room and saw his small body breathing soundly under his spiderman covers. JJ smiled, feeling hurt tears prick her eyes.

"Hello?" She heard a groggy voice behind her. Will was standing there in his pajamas with a baseball bat in hand, rubbing his eyes sleepily.

"I wanted to see him," JJ said, a cold hint in her voice. Will just sighed and nodded, turning back to their bedroom. "Will, please don't do this." A tear slide down her cheek. _Damn it. _

"JJ, Henry shouldn't be growing up with a mother who isn't here half the time. It's not fair to me or to him," Will said, raising his voice slightly, then realizing he was risking waking the five year old. "It's either your family or the job, JJ. You can't have both." JJ's nostrils flared, anger flooding through her veins.

"He's my son too, not just yours," she gritted out.

"Well, start acting like a mother!" Will yelled.

"Mommy?" Henry's small voice echoed out through the hallway. "Are you home?" JJ quickly swiped away the tears and slipped into her son's bedroom, closing the door behind her. She couldn't handle looking, much less speaking, to Will for another minute.

"Hey, baby, we didn't mean to wake you up," she murmured comfortingly, sitting down on the side of his bed and stroking his shaggy blonde hair out of his eyes.

"It's ok," He mumbled in a tired voice.

"Go back to bed, honey. I promise I'll be here tomorrow."

"Will you lay down with me, mommy?" Henry asked. Even through his exhaustion, JJ could hear a hint of hope. She smiled, nodding, and kissed his cheek.

"Of course I will, love." She pulled back the spiderman covers and snuggled next to Henry's warm body. He wrapped his little around her waist and lay his head on her chest.

JJ sighed to herself. Fuck, she missed the feeling of Henry's small body hugging hers, and as much as she didn't want to admit it, she missed Will. Was the BAU it really worth it? The question seemed so different with Henry next to her, sleeping soundly.

JJ couldn't shake the feeling that she would be asking herself that question for a while.

* * *

"So, I had no idea that you moved to Washington," Emily said with a grin as she sipped her third beer. Three bailing friends and an hour later, Emily was nestled in the booth with Eric. They'd talked about a lot of things, mostly Emily's career as an agent, but they were just getting to the topic of Eric's arrival.

"Well, I actually just got a job here," He said smiling his dazzling smile.

"As what?" Emily asked, leaning forward on her elbows, eager to hear more.

"As an agent with the FBI," Eric answered in a casual tone, but Emily knew by the painfully obvious smirk on his face that he knew the excitement racing through Emily's veins.

"Oh my God, Eric, that's fantastic!" She exclaimed throwing her arms around his broad shoulders. Emily hardly noticed the way Eric chuckled and hugged her more tightly than she was hugging him. "I'm so happy for you," She murmured. In truth, she was. Why wouldn't she be? It was a scary coincidence thought. Eric in the FBI, her in the FBI, rekindling their relationship for one night at twelve o'clock in a nearly empty bar.

"Really? I couldn't tell," He answered playfully. Emily giggled and pulled away for a moment to look into his eyes. They were still that same deep blue, but there seemed to be more of a sparkle there. Before she could say anything else, Eric looked at his watch. "It's pretty late. How 'bout we continue this exciting conversation tomorrow, over dinner at my place." Emily grinned.

"That sounds great." God, her heart was racing a mile a minute, she felt like her stomach was flip-flopping, and she felt like her brain was scrambled. She felt like a teenager again.

"Do you need a ride home?" Eric offered.

"Oh no," Emily waved off his offer politely, "I'll just get a cab."

"The least I can do is walk you out then," He said politely with a wink. Emily smiled coyly and nodded.

The pair walked out into the frosty night air and Eric flagged down a cab quickly. He was immediately back by her side.

"So," He began, "I guess this is goodnight."

"Yeah, I guess it is," Emily responded, not sure what she was waiting for. And then she realized it. Eric stepped closer, his large hands finding their way to her waist.

"You are so beautiful," He murmured, leaning in to seal the deal. His lips ever so lightly pressed against hers, taking her breath away. It took all of Emily's might not to swoon right there. The way he held her was just-just amazing. Simply amazing.

And then it was over before she could completely comprehend the feelings that were pulsing through her veins.

"Goodnight." Eric leaned back, steering her plaint body towards the car.

"G'night," Emily managed to say without completely embarrassing herself. _He must know what he does to me _Emily thought. Eric opened the door of the cab for her and smiled.

Emily got in shakily and lay her head back on the seat, sighing heavily with a smile plastered on her face after she told the cabbie her address. As much as she tried to wipe off the ridiculously overexcited look on her face, she just couldn't. It had been more than forever ago since she had ever talked with a man like Eric. He made her feel loved, appreciated, interested. It was like talking to the perfect person. _It was like talking to JJ _Emily thought to herself, a sinking feeling in her stomach. _Why do I keep bringing JJ into this? _Emily asked herself, frustrated that she couldn't shake the image of JJ out of her brain.

The whole ride home Emily's mind collided with images and thoughts of JJ and Eric. It was inexplicable, it was infuriating, and most of all it was something Emily never had the chance to experience. Never, not once had she ever had an experience with a woman, unless you could a few drunken nights in college, but JJ was different. She was young and spirited, she made Emily feel like a whole different person, tender and loving. JJ cared about Emily as a friend, but God that look she had given her only a few hours earlier made her rethink that. What if JJ thought of her as more? Emily didn't even know if JJ had ever had feelings for women, but the younger agent could be feeling different things than before. Nevertheless, it was ridiculous but it was tempting.

Eric, though. Eric was handsome, charming, funny, and obviously looking for someone. Guys that were looking for a quick fuck weren't going to revive their relationship with an ex. He was everything Emily had ever hoped for in a man and he was just as tempting as the thought of having JJ. It was a matter of opinion within herself. She had locked away the angel and devil and thrown away that Godforsaken key. Now all she had to do was figure which one her whole heart and soul wanted.

The same answer kept appearing much to Emily's dismay.

JJ.

* * *

20 minutes later, Emily had arrived at her apartment building. Though she'd moved into the high rise apartment nearly 3 months ago, she could never quite get over how beautiful it was. The lights from the dozens of apartments twinkled against the black night sky and she caught a glimpse of the capital in the background.

She quickly jumped on an elevator to the 10 floor and couldn't walk any faster to jam her key into the lock. Emily jabbed the code into the alarm system and dropped her duffle bag next to the coat rack.

Emily felt something brush against her ankle and was momentarily startled, but then she saw that it was Sergio, her cat.

"Hey Serg," She murmured, with a tired smile. This reminded her to thank her neighbor, Lana, for taking care of him. Emily scooped the black fluff ball into her arms and snuggled her face into his neck. "I guess I should feed you, right little man?"

After pouring some dry food into Sergio's little bowl, Emily slugged upstairs and stripped off her sweater and pants, crawling under her warm comforter. She didn't think about anything, not even JJ, as she slipped into a deep sleep.


End file.
